Raw

I've been crappy at blogging lately, but I've been rocking at emailing Tessa on her mission!  I figured I'd just copy and paste part of the letter I wrote to her.  It's a little more raw than my blogs normally are, more personable.  Life's so great :)  

  Tami came on Friday and it was so fun having her!  I just love her!  We had so much fun shopping and talking all evening Friday.  We went to dinner at Zupas and then to Cold Stone where we met up with Mary and Ryan.  When we got home we talked with Ashlee and her sister-in-law for quite a while and talked about how we wish we were as good as you at turning awkward situations onto the other people around you!  Haha!  Every time you get in an awkward situation, you are so good at getting out of it!  Example A: Your birth control shot and Toomer and Thompson.  Example B: When you farted on that date.  I literally have NO examples of getting myself out of humiliating situations.  I normally just make it worse.  haha! Anyways, we were talking and laughing our heads off!  I seriously haven't laughed that hard in quite some time!  Then Tam and I came into my room and talked for far too long!  I slept on the floor and her in my bed.  I love that us sisters all have such awesome relationships.  Seriously.  Taffy is 12 years older than me and Tami 10, and they both have come and had sleepovers with me this semester.  I'm so lucky to have my sisters as my best friends.  

  We shopped all day again Saturday.  It was so fun to shop with her because all I ever shop for is clothes, and I have done NONE of that this semester. (I'm so poor!)  We shopped for all of this fun home decor stuff and storage and home improvement stuff!  So fun!  I just dreamed of how I'm going to decorate my log cabin some day ;)  We left Provo around 3:00 and parted ways.  I went to Taffy's and she went home. 

 I went to Taf's to babysit her kids Sunday.  Her and Tone are in New Zealand and Mom was in charge of the kids.  Well Mom needed to go to Mya's blessing, so I went to get the kids up and dressed and to church and then took them to Angela's.  There's a reason why we have children one at a time.  Zero to 5 overnight probably isn't the best way.  haha!  They were really good though!  We had a little birthday party for Mariah (she turns 8 tomorrow?!)  It was fun and the kids were just so cute!  They were excited to see me, which always makes ya feel good ya know?  Us adults need to love more like kids do.  

  Anyways, I sure love ya Tess!  Sorry there's not much about school, but I figure it would be super boring to you.  My brain is going a million miles an hour about a million things right now though.  Boys, school, future teaching plans, January plans, my next trip, how I'm going to have $5 after I pay rent next month, ya know, all the things :)  I do know that my Savior loves me though.  He wants me to be happy, and he's trying to help me continue to love life!  I'm not sure what He's got up His sleeve on this next one, but it's gotta be good, I'm sure!  In Relief Society today it just really hit me that I need to just rely on him.  I'm just so dang independent that it's killing me to not feel good about what I WANT to do and that I actually NEED to do something else.  I'm going with it though Tess.  I'm taking a leap of faith!  Look out world!  Thanks for always walking by Faith.  Thanks for serving a mission.  I am just so proud of you!  You are definitely toppy on my list of awesome/best people and I feel so blessed that I get to be so close with someone as great as you!  Love you Sis!  Can't wait to hear from you!  Have the best week!!  

Love, Livi :)  

Back At It!

I just started my fourth week of my last semester at BYU.  So crazy to think about that.  I don't say my last week of school, cause who knows?!  I just might be crazy enough to go back someday, but probably not to BYU.  So I feel like I'm safe to say that.  I'm really loving school.  More that I thought I would.  My last in the classroom experience was hard.  Really hard.  And I questioned if teaching was for me or not.  Well, I've been through 3 weeks in a second grade class at Barnett Elementary School in Payson, UT, and I'm loving it!  I feel like I'm thriving down there instead of just surviving!  I'm excited about my lessons and I LOVE those kids!  Who knew you could love a bunch of 7 year olds in such a short amount of time?!  I'm also loving actually getting ready and wearing teacher-y clothes :)  Still had to take a first day of school pic to send to my mom!  Ha

While I'm loving my schooling part of being back at it, school most definitely does NOT rule my life!  I've been loving the things of my single/college/BYU/Provo life.  

One of my favorite things of being back is the gym.  I got a pass to VASA this semester and it's been so nice!  I don't ever have to wait for weights or machines, and it's literally a block and a half from my apartment.  

I'm loving my roommates!  I knew Ashlee (the super cute blonde on the left) a little bit, and we both met Jessi (the babe on the right) when we moved in.  We had a fun ice cream party on Wednesday night with a bunch of our friends, and it was a hit!  It was so fun for me to meet more of their friends and to see some of mine.  We're definitely doing it again next month :)  I also really love our apartment and ward.  Everything about it is great!  

My mom has already been down to visit twice, and there's no complaints here!  I LOVE when she comes!  This past weekend we hiked Timp and did our center street walk.  We found this fun bookstore down there!  Pioneer Book.  So great!  I'm not a lover of reading, so for me to say that is a pretty big deal...

I'm enjoying concocting my own meals again.  I've had some interesting ones.  The most random one was probably taco meat with spinach, brown rice, and plain greek yogurt.  It was actually quite a bit better than in sounds!  I also have no clue what I would do without eggs.  I've eaten at least one every single day.  

I've also just loved being back at the Y.  I really do love BYU.  I love the campus, I love going to the games, I just love the spirit of this place.  I'm not like a psycho fan or anything, but I'm so so glad I came to school here.  I've met so many good people here and while I'm not going to stay here forever, I'll forever be thankful for the time I have spent here.  It's definitely special to me.   

My cousin Sadie is finally down here at school too, and it's been fun to do some things with her!  I just love how comfortable I can be around here and we've had fun on a few hikes.  I've also been able to do some things with Liz Dayton from Cokeville, and that's been fun for me to get to know her better.  She's a great girl!  

Life is really good right now.  I'm really feeling content with what's happening, and I feel like it's God's way of letting me know that I'm on the right track.  I'm thankful for that.  

My Room

So, the bedroom in my parents house has been mine since Tyson graduated in 2004.  That's a pretty long time.  I've chosen the wall paint, the bedspread, the pictures, and all of the little things that make the room mine.  This room is a space that is totally ME.  I was putting clothes away and cleaning up a little bit this afternoon and I was reading all of the quotes on little papers and tiles, and looking at the photos, and thinking about the different pieces of furniture and how by surrounding myself by all of these things every day have shaped who I am and who I am becoming.  

Anyways, here's a little "tour" of my room. 

 Here we have the beds.  The room recently became Tessa and I's (at Christmas time) because all of my married siblings felt the need for another double bed in the house.  I'm not really sure why??...  So, now we have bunk beds and I sleep in a cave.  

I made the quilt on the bottom bunk.

My mom or grannie made the quilt on the top bunk years and years ago.

My grandma Teichert made my pillow case.

She also made the baby blanket you can see wadded up in the far top corner of my bed :)  

Taffy made the pillow case on the top bunk.

The stool has my jammies on it.

I recovered the stool last summer.  I got it out of Stan Larson's yard and redid it, but I'm not super pumped about how it turned out.  

Above the bed is this quote.  I really love it.  Taffy gave it to me for Christmas one year. 

This is also above the bed.  This picture was given to me by my grandma Teichert.  It reminded her of Tessa and I, and it basically is.  

Also, I just notice my lovely corsage from my junior prom?! haha

 Now we have my closet.  It is almost always like this with one door open because that's the best place to hang my towel.  I know I have way too many clothes because they don't fit in here very well...

On the open door there is a picture of the Logan Temple and the Young Women's theme.

There is also a quote by President Hinkley that says, "Of all the creations of the Almighty, there is none more beautiful, none more inspiring than a lovely daughter of God who walks in virtue with an understanding of why she should do so, who honors and respects her body as a thing sacred and divine, who cultivates her mind and constantly enlarges the horizon of her understanding, who nurtures her spirit with everlasting truth."  

On the closed door is a picture of me with Mylie and Tel at the airport waiting for Violet to get home from her mission.  

Here was have a collection of all of my things.  

The blue trunk was my great grandma Duncan's that she brought out west with her when she was 16. 

The two boxes hold letters, journals, pictures, and other random fun things.  

Against the closet is a little trinket thing that was a gift from someone in the Philippines.  

On top of the boxes are an emergency lantern, my life quote "It's not all sunshine and rainbows, but a lot of it actually is," and my favorite sister missionary ever!

After the boxes comes a long line of books:

Panoramas from all over the world

Photo album from my summer of DC, Costa Rica, and Alaska

Two children's books, one about self esteem and one about making choices

History of Hugh and Flossie Brady (my grandma Buhla's parents)

Letters from my 4th graders at West Side Elementary

Photo album of photos of just Tessa and I through the years.  She gave it to me for graduation and we just keep adding to it!

Recipe book from my Oberg side  

Photo book from my senior year made by Taffy

New York photo book  

Family photo book

Four instagram photo books

Moab photo book from Kalbie

Spanish/English Dictionary

Farm Animal book from my favorite antique store in Provo

My latest journal

Laying on the trunk are my headphones and my almost finished letter to Tessa.

Then Violet picked up that cool old wooden desk for me for $50 at some antique store.  I love it. 

On top of that is a picture of my family and my globe.

Hanging above all that is the only decoration that goes with me to college: my favorite picture of Christ.  My space just isn't complete without it.  

  This is my "getting ready" area.  It's where the most clutter is.  I always get ready here instead of in the bathroom and I know it has saved me from many fights with my brothers, since I've always shared a bathroom with them.  

First of all, this mirror is the best with the swinging sides!  

On the mirror I have nice reminders and quotes that remind me to have courage, be kind, be diligent, remember Christ loves me, and to like myself.  

The table normally has some sort of hair tool, but at the moment just has perfume and lotion.  

The chair is my favorite.  It was my great grandma Minerva's.  

Tami made the pillow that goes on it for me for Christmas one year.  

The shorts and pants draped over it are work pants that are too dirty to fold up and put in my closet again, but too clean to throw in the dirties :)  

The little dresser thing holds all the things I use and all the things I don't use, but for some reason still hold on to.  

Then my jewelry is all hung up.  

The wall hanging above my necklaces is a board that I literally broke in half with my hand.  We did it at Girl's Camp one year and then painted it and put vinyl lettering that says, "I can do hard things.  The Lord is my strength."  So true.

Then I have my garbage and my clothes hamper.  

The part is pretty cluttery.......

I've got this picture hanging that Taffy made for me for Christmas one year.  The pictures are super outdated, but I really love them.

We've got Mylie, Connor, and Tel back when they were the only 3 grandkids, a picture of me with my fish I caught up in Seldovia, AK, and then Tessa and I kayaking up in Alaska. 

An the lowest shelf I've got a little tile that says "Be strong and of good courage"

The medium one has a picture of me and my dad at a daddy-daughter date for Merry Miss and a tissue box holder made by Norene Thompson.

The tallest box has a pretty framed quote I got for Christmas years ago that says "Daughter, bless your heart for the happiness you put in mine," a box with a beautiful hand held mirror from Nauvoo, and a jar full of my great grandma Duncan's buttons.  

Below the tallest shelf is my small doll collection with dolls from Alaska, Peru, Ecuador, a porcelain doll from my Aunt Linda, and a doll made by my grannie.  

Also, hats and belts.

So, there's my room.  It's amazing to me how much my room is just me.  So much of the furniture and decorations are sentimental.  I realize that I'm pretty lucky to have as many neat pieces of furniture as I do.  The quotes and pictures all have a purpose.  We internalize the things we put around us whether we realize it or not.  I've been thinking a lot about qualities I have and qualities that I want to acquire.  So many of these quotes are about self worth and confidence.  While I lack confidence in many areas, I do not doubt that I am a daughter of God and that He loves me.  I realize that all around my room are reminders of that very thing.  I know that these quotes have become a part of me and have given me confidence throughout my few short years of life.  

It's been fun to take a close look at my room and think about the little things that define me, and if you made it to the end of this post, good for you! haha  

Temple Trips

I've been lucky enough to go to the Cebu, Philippines Temple not once, but twice!  The first time I went with the Institute.  We had a great time!  The second time I went with Angie, Yet-yet, Rix, Lillian, and some members of our ward.  We also had a great time!  

Our travel arrangements were the same both times, so I'll just explain it all once :)  To get to Cebu we hopped on a boat around midnight that went through the night.  The seating arrangements were bunk beds.  It looked like this: 

Top Bunk

Bottom Bunk

Both trips I slept like a rock!  No covers, lights on, people chatting--I'm a pretty good sleeper :) I woke up just in time for the sunrise and getting off the boat :)

We got there first things in the morning, around 5:30-6:00 and headed straight to the temple grounds.  The temple grounds in Cebu is kind of like a compound.  There is the temple, a stake center, the mission home, and a pension house.  The pension house has rooms for members attending the temple as well as a cafeteria and locker rooms.  Both times we were able to get cleaned up and get some breakfast there before we attended the temple.  I was able to do a total of 3 sessions of baptisms in my two trips. While we waited for people to get dome I got to spend some time walking and sitting around the temple grounds.  They were beautiful, as usual.  

The pension house is quite nice, and it was so convenient to be able to eat right there while we waited for other members of our groups to finish with their sessions.  I was able to find these 2 pictures painted by Grandma Minerva, as well as her painting of Christ in the Red Robe that was inside of the baptistry.  

The temple workers are called there on missions.  I was able to meet two different couples, both from Utah.  They claim it's the best mission on earth, and I believe them!  All of the senior couples live on the 3rd floor of the pension house, right next to the temple.  They get to go out and eat at different places around the city.  Then the temple closes for 2 weeks every 6 months, so then they get to go and vacation for those 2 weeks.  Sounds pretty great to me!

Both trips we stayed in Cebu for one night.  With the Institute we stayed at a place that was kind of like a hostel.  Then the second time we stayed at the Pension house.  To get home we caught a bus that drove us to the south eastern tip of Cebu Island.  That ride was about 4-4.5 hours with a nice stop in the middle.  Then we caught a short 20-30 minute boat back to Negros Island, and from there a short jeep ride to Dumaguete.   It was good for me to see the sacrifice that the members here go through to attend the temple.  

We had some neat experiences with members in my groups in both trips to the temple that helped to strengthen my testimony.  There are some strong members here and it has been so good for me to experience The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints here in Dumaguete.  It's the same.  There are valiant leaders, strong members, missionaries, and the same special spirit.  I love this gospel and I love my Savior.  I love attending His temples and the renewed energy it gives me each time I attend.    

Letter to Tess

I wrote this email to Tess tonight and I decided it was actually a pretty fun recap of my last two days. It's kind of like my whole life--fun, weird, and a little crazy mixed in with some spiritual. Plus I really use my own voice when I write to Tess, so it's just more me :) 

Dear Tessa, 

  I ate duck embryo tonight. Seriously. It was actually a lot like an egg, but it was kind of like a soft boiled egg and kind of gross... I'm probably not going to eat that again... On the plus side, it involved a fun night at the boulevard. The boulevard is this brick laid path right by the ocean. On Friday nights there's live bands and everything and it's just so fun! I loved it! We also had some squid rolls and tempura there at the street stand, and they were very good! We ended the night with desert at an actual restaurant called Sans Rizal and I ordered this delicious lemon lime cake stuff. Not as good as I was hoping, but still very yummy! 

  While we're on the topic of food, there are these two drinks here that are to die for! Both of them are actually fairly healthy! One is a Buko shake which is a coconut shake. They just put in evaporated milk, a bunch of fresh coconut meat, ice, water, and wala! Deliciousness! My favorite though, which will be served at my wedding is called mixed fruit. It's a lot like that drink the Tonga's make, but instead of grating the fruit, you cut it into chunks and you put the watermelon, apples, bananas, and papaya all in the same drink. Then you just add some milk and cream. Seriously so good! I have one or the other of these drinks almost every day. 

   More food stuff...haha we eat shrimp a couple of times a week and I love it! It's SO cheap here! I think the last shrimp we bought was like 35 pesos per kilo, which is about 70 cents per kilo! It's a steal and it is SO fresh! Anyways, I'm eating delicious food here, and I can't wait to hear about all your fave Argentina foods :) Get the recipes! 

  Anyways, I just had to tell you about the duck embryo cause I'm still kind of freaked out about it?! Haha I hope you're having the best day, and when you're served something super sketch down there, just think about your brave sissy who is actually a sissy, but is trying to be brave and do cool stuff. 

  Anyways for reals this time! Haha I love you and I pray for you every day. I know prayer works and I know you're doing what's right. The Lord loves you. I went to an institute class here last night and we talked about the Atonement. I don't know what was different last night (maybe cause I was relying more on the spirit than the language), but I really realized how selfless Christ was. We made a list on the board of the reasons Christ preformed the Atonement and all of the reasons were for us. I was just filled with overwhelming gratitude and had a huge awakening at how I need to be SO much more selfless. I need to put others desires and needs first. I need to be more compassionate. I need to do what the Lord wants. (The list could go on and on and on...) On the way home I got to thinking about you and how selfless your choice to serve a mission was. You didn't necessarily want to go, but you wanted to do what the Lord needed you to do. So Christ-like. You decided to go and try to help others come closer to their Savior. So Christ-like.  You decided to leave the ordinary life and go into the unpredictable, putting your life in God's hands. Once again, so Christ-like. 

  Well Tess, you're my hero, and for reals this time, I'm ending this letter! Haha I love you a lot and I hope you're having the best day! If not, I hope this brightens it :) You're my best example and I love ya! Buena suerte con el español!! 

Con amor, Livi :)

The Separation

It's been a week and half since Tess left on her mission.  I'm not going to lie.  I've been a little bit lost.  She is definitely my best friend, number one fan, frustration outlet, comical relief, and partner in crime.  I'm going to be fine, it's just a little hard to adjust, ya know? 

                                               

The days before her leaving were pretty rough.  I probably cried more then than I have since.  It was tough watching her pack all of her things away, both the things she was leaving here as well as the things she was taking with her.  I was folding her clothes up to put in her suitcase, and I just couldn't stop the tears.  Pretty soon Mom, Tess, and I were all crying.  Then I cried each time she had to tell a family member goodbye.  I just felt so bad for her.  I know that she's confident that serving a mission is what she's supposed to do, but for someone who loves her family as much as Tessa does, it definitely wasn't an easy choice.  

On December 30th Mom, Dad, and I took her to the MTC where she'll start learning Spanish and get an idea of what she needs to know to be a successful missionary.  I was doing pretty good and keeping it all together until we went up by the temple to take a picture together.  Neither of us could keep it together, and we just hugged and cried.  We dropped her off and there were more tears, but as we were pulling out we saw her wiping her tears away and smiling and talking with the nice sister missionary who picked her up on the curb.  It made me feel better.  

Of course that night there were at least 3 funny memes or videos that I wanted to show here, but she wasn't here and I couldn't just message them to her.  So I wrote her a Dear Elder instead.  

The times I notice the most that she's not around is when I've found myself having to sit alone at the basketball or wrestling, when I hear funny jokes and want to tell her, when I accidentally say something stupid and no one gives me a hard time, ya know, sisterly things like that that Tess and I always did together.  

I've had a fun-filled week, but each time I was doing something I couldn't help but think how much fun Tessa would have doing it with us!  Jazz game, snowshoeing, skiing, watching Dad's girl's team, and playing with the nephews--she woulda loved doing them all!  But, she's doing a greater work.  She's preparing to teach people about TRUE HAPPINESS.  The kind you can't find at a Jazz game or on the ski hill.  She's going to go and teach people how they can be together with their families FOREVER.  She's going to teach them how they can return to live with their Heavenly Father and find true joy.  She's dedicating 18 months of her life to serve others.  I'm so proud of her.  

I'm not going to lie and tell you that there haven't been more tears since she left, but I am going to tell you that she's doing so great!  She's sent us some pictures and she just looks great.  Her letters are positive and happy.  She did tell me that she wishes that we could be companions (even though she loves her companion!) because we wouldn't have to be "nicy-nice" through the frustrating times and we'd just get work done!  haha.  I just love her.  

 

Tess and her companion, Sister Davidson

A Wedding of Friends

The start of this week (ya know when all the storms were and stuff), we headed down to a wedding of two of our dear friends.  Tess and I both lived with Brittanie last year and we just love her.  She ended up not living in the house this year, but she was our most frequent visitor, and we love her!  She's always just so happy and full of life and energy.  I admire how she always looks on the positive side of things.  She is so good at looking at the big perspective and having faith that everything will turn out for the best.  She's always so fun and we always have a good time when we're with Brit.

Luckily, Brittanie married a guy who is just as fun and full of life as she is!  Adam has this special way of making everyone in the room instantly happier when he enters.  We passed each other between classes a couple of times each week this semester, and it always brightened my day talking with Adam for a minute or two.  I'm just so happy for those two and I'm so glad they let Tessa and I be a part of their day :)

Between Tessa, Eden, and I we were able to get some fun pictures.  Here are a few of my favorites.

Brittanie asked me to do her hair for her big day.  I was both honored and excited!  I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out.  She seemed to be happy about it too :)

 I have been loving the dutch braids lately! 

That temple is just so huge and beautiful!

 Me and my sissy :)

Mary, Tess, Adam, Me, and Eden.  What a guy!  

A great group of friends that all showed up to party at the reception.  We had so much fun talking, laughing, eating, and dancing.

Brittanie and the bridesmaids from the Sherwood House

The fastest stretch of traveling.  Good visibility, 3-4 inches of snow on the road, and no other traffic!

These past couple of months I have been realizing even more how important it is that I marry someone who is not only going to take me to the temple to get married, but who will take me back frequently. The Gospel is not something to be casual about, and being on the temple grounds and waiting for all of my friends to come out from the sealing strengthened my testimony of the importance of the gospel in my life.  

A Day in the Life

Yesterday was just a normal day in the life of Livi.  I decided I needed to document a normal college day.  Nothing too exciting.  Nothing terrible.  Just a normal day.  

     5:30     Woke up and headed to the temple with Tessa to do baptisms for the dead.
     7:10     Got back from the temple, ate breakfast, and got ready for school.
     7:45     Left my house and rode my bike up to campus.
     8:00     My practicum class.  I forgot to bring two assignments to turn in and was given 3 more assignments to be completed by next week.
     8:50     Went up to the student services office in the McKay building to talk to an advisor about changing the semester I student teach.  The appointment scheduler was the guy who baptized me this morning!  He worked some magic and got me in right then!  I met with my advisor, Kelly, and got the low down on what I needed to do.
     9:30     Pumped up my tire at Outdoors Unlimited (those darn flats!) and arrived at work.  At work I worked on giant pads for the walls in the gymnastics room on campus.
    11:30    I left work and headed up to campus to meet some friends to go and get free donuts :)
    11:45    Arrived at the location to receive free donuts with my friends, and they were out of donuts.  A little depressing, but honestly, I shouldn't have been eating a donut anyways!
    12:00    Had my literacy class with Brad Wilcox.  One of my favorite classes.  We talked about teaching speaking and listening.  Then he talked to us about being busy and having a lot of things to do in life.  He talked about prioritizing and how that never seems to work because we're supposed to put God first, but in a world where our jobs and school take up most of our time, that is often difficult.  Next he talked about balance and how that is another hard one, because can we really balance every single thing we need to do every single day?  It's nearly impossible.  Then he read us this awesome book, The Clown of God.  It was so good and it talked about this clown that juggled.  He would juggle all of these different balls, but the most important ball (which he never let drop) was a big, golden ball.  This ball represented our relationship with God.  I loved the moral this old folktale told.  Juggling life.  It's real and it's hard, but if we make sure we keep our golden ball up (our relationship with God), then it won't matter so much what other balls drop.  As we get a better handle on our lives, we can pick the other balls up again and keep trying.  This is one thing I love about BYU.  The opportunity the teachers have to teach us about spiritual topics.  Brother Wilcox is great!
     1:00    Class got out an hour early?!  I went and got everything done that I needed to to change my student teaching date.
     1:25     I ran into Andrew Petersen!  It's always fun to see people you know.
     1:40     I met up with an advisor to talk about my scholarship eligibility for next fall.
     2:00     Math class.  We had a fun lesson on teaching Place Value.  Very helpful.  I also ate my lunch during class.
     3:30     Rushed down from campus and hopped in my car to go and tutor out in Mapleton.
     4:00     Arrived at the first house I tutor at, and helped Kamae with math.
     4:30     Arrived at the Ryskamp's where I helped Faith write a fun persuasive paper and helped Reed with his math.
     6:25     Left the Ryskamp's.
     6:45     Arrived at the WILK for a 4H meeting that was supposed to go from 6-7.  I knew I was late, but I didn't want to miss the whole thing!  I forgot my phone at my apartment, so I didn't have any way to communicate that I was going to be late, and when I got there they were already cleaned up and gone.
     6:55     Went over to the HFAC for a minute to watch part of the dress rehearsal for a concert that a couple of my friends are in tomorrow and Saturday.  I would have just gone to the real thing, but it's sold out!  I just listened to one song, Oh Come All Ye Faithful.  Amazing.  I sat by and talked to a nice boy.
     7:25     I left campus and came home for some dinner!  Tess and I had creamed corn and chicken.  It was delicious.
     7:50     I put together some things for my calling as compassionate service committee member and delivered them to some girls in our ward.
     8:20     Returned from the deliveries (and chatting, let's be honest!) and did some homework.
     8:50     Tess and I headed to our intramural co-ed volleyball game, which we lost :(
     9:45     Faith, Tess, and I stopped by a dance party and shook it for a minute.  I'm a horrible dancer.  We ended up outside talking with Dillon and Andy.
    10:30    We went to a Christmas pie party at our friends' apartment.  Zach and Ty were awesome hosts, and it was really fun!  We got there at the tail end of the party, so we actually got to visit with friends and have a good time cause it wasn't so darn crowded.  I met some new people too.
    11:15    We left the pie party and I came home and did some more homework!  
    11:45     I finally crawled into bed.

Throughout the day I was texting planning a 4H activity, scheduling things for the weekend, etc.  Looking back on yesterday I'm reminded how blessed I am on a daily basis.  I am so lucky to be able to do all of the fun, educational, sometimes frustrating things that I do.  Life is busy and great, and I'm going to just keep on juggling my way through it :) 

     

The Cemetery Girls

This post is LONG overdue, but I just needed to write a post about three of the most influential girls in my life.  They all have something in common--they were all my work partner up at the cemetery :)  When you spend about 30 hours together every week, just you and them, you get to know each other pretty well!  

Holly and I worked together the first two years.  Boy was it fun!  Neither of us had any clue what we were doing, but we had fun figuring it out together!  We were pretty good friends all growing up, but in those two summers she became one of my best friends!  I was lucky enough to get to watch her fall in love and marry Ryan.  Now she has a baby and lives in Germany?!  Where has the time gone?!  I can't go too long without a good chat with Holly.  Since she's moved to Germany we've had some good skype chats.  I just love her and her little family!  Holly has taught me to never give up--even when there seems no way out.  She taught me to laugh when you want to cry.  She inspired me with her diligent training for her half marathon.  She's a great friend to all, and I'm so glad I was able to spend so many hours with such a great girl!  

She came home for a little bit to bless her baby, and I was lucky enough to get to visit with her and snap this picture :)

After Holly decided she wouldn't be coming back, I was devastated.  I didn't think that I would ever be able to find someone that great to work with.  Then along came Sierra!  In high school Sierra and I referred to each other as "church friends" cause we were besties in our ward, but we both had different best friends.  Well, we became more than church friends that summer.  We did literally everything together!!  The summer started out pretty rough, but we got it turned around.  At the start of each week we would plan all of the fun things we wanted to do, and then we would plan our work schedule around it.  We did so many fun things!  From fishing to shopping, we did it all!  Sierra has such a deep love for our Savior.  She knows that He knows what's best for her, even if it doesn't make sense to us.  Many of our conversations revolved around the Gospel, and she was so good about sharing her testimony with me.  She taught me to love our little valley more than I ever thought was possible.  All summer long we would say we were the same person because we thought so much alike.  Most days we laughed until we cried.  This last month I was lucky enough to be one of her bridesmaids.  I was so excited for her to meet and fall in love with Trevor.  All the heartbreaks were worth it--he's great!  I felt so honored, and I absolutely LOVED getting to spend some extra time with her and her family preparing for, and enjoying the day.  She was a stunning bride, and had the happiest, best attitude the whole day!  What an awesome, inspiring girl!  

Her wedding day was seriously the best!  She didn't seems stressed at all and was smiling to the last minute!  

When Sierra wasn't coming back, I really thought I was in trouble.  I had already lucked out twice, and there was no way I was going to find a third girl that I would get along with that well.  Then along came Kalbie!  I cannot even begin to tell you how much this girl has impacted my life.  When we started work up there in May we had only talked to each other like 3 times.  We were practically strangers.  After the first day, I knew we were going to be great friends!  She is so happy and outgoing and fun!  You can't help but like Kalbie Harmon.  She has that same love for the outdoors as me, and we had fun doing a few adventures together.  We were always thinking about the next place we wanted to go hiking or running.  It's also convenient that she married one of my best friends from high school, cause now I get to see both of them often!  Kalbie taught me about how important it is to constantly be progressing.  She is always trying to become the best person she can be whether it is spiritually, physically, or improving her relationships with others.  She greets everyone with a big smile, and she just makes you feel so loved!  It wasn't unusual to see Kalbie and I talking for another hour after work, because we never seemed to run out of things to talk about.  I'm glad she lives in Cokeville and that I get to see her, but I also love a good phone chat with Kalbie.  She's just so great!

We actually do have a photo of us in nice clothes, but I just like this one better :)  

When I started working at the Cokeville Cemetery in 2012 I had no idea it would have this large of an impact on my life!  I'm forever grateful for these girls and the things I've learned from them.   

"Como un niño pequeñito"

Tonight Tessa planned an awesome FHE "Banana Boats and The Book of Mormon."  So, we made banana boats and shared one of our favorite scriptures from The Book of Mormon.  Everyone's scriptures were so good!  (Imagine that...haha!)  When Tessa told me that this is what we were doing I immediately remembered a scripture I had read in El Libro de Mormon three days earlier.  I had been reading in 3 Nephi when Christ is talking to the people in the America's before he appears to them.  Chapter 9 verse 22 really stuck out to me.  Maybe it was because I finally understood a whole verse, but I just loved it.  I read, "Por tanto, al que se arrepintiere y viniere a mí como un niño pequeñito, yo lo recibiré, porque de los tales es el reino do Dios.  He aquí, por éstos he dado mi vida, y la he vuelto a tomar; así pues, arrepentíos y venid a mí, vosotros, extremos de la tierra, y sed salvos."   

Today I went and read it in English.  "Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God.  Behold, for such I have laid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved."  

First of all, this verse stuck out to me because I am an Elementary Ed major and I love kids.  I think about them all day.  At the start of the verse it says to come unto Him as a little child.  I can not think of any group of people more pure and Christlike than kids.  They are so innocent and they just want to do good.  They truly are closer to God, and I'm so glad I'm going to be able to surround myself with them everyday.  

The second part that stuck out to me was when it said, "for such I have laid down my life..."  Christ died for us that we could have the chance to repent and live with Him again.  He knew that we were going to make mistakes.  None of us are perfect, but He was willing to pay the price so that we could all return to live with our Heavenly Father again.  

I love my Savior.  I know that I can return to live with Him and our Heavenly Father again, but only through the Atonement.  I am far from perfect, but He helps me out all the time.  Almost daily I am able to have an experience with the Spirit, just like the one I shared above.  It's moments like that where I truly feel His love for me, not only from the sacrifices He made for me as He atoned for my sins, but the love He still has for me as He cheers me on and helps me out each day during this journey here on earth.   

My Body

Guys, I figured out my favorite gift.  It was the gift of a body.  My body.  Now, before you think I'm conceited and love my body or something like that (cause I've got plenty of problems with it, I promise!), let me explain to you a little about why I'm so happy with this gift.  

First of all, my body houses my spirit.  My personality, my ideas, everything I think about gets to happen because I have a body.  I get to feel.  I get to love.  I get to hurt.  If I didn't have a body I wouldn't be me (obviously...).

Second, my body works perfectly!  I get to hike, ride my bike, run, jump, play sports, walk, cook food, and the list could go on and on!  Would I love to be more athletic?  Certainly.  Am I grateful for what I have?  Definitely.  It just blows my mind how I can just work my body to the point of complete exhaustion, get a little rest, and go right back at it.  I'm so blessed!  

Finally, by having a body it means I chose Heavenly Father's plan during the war in heaven.  To me, that is the most significant part of having a body.  All of you reading this chose to come to earth and have a body!  You made the first biggest decision correctly!  I'm thankful everyday that I made that choice.  

Sometimes I focus on the negative parts of my body.  Most of the time I wish I was skinnier, or my muscles were more toned, or I had better skin, but when I'm thinking negatively, all I have to do is remember all of the amazing things my body can do!  How did I get so lucky to be given a body that functions properly and allows me to do so many things?! I mean, I can do this everyday:

I was gifted with this body, and I'm going to try to use it the best I can.  I'm going to take care of it.  I'm going to be grateful for it, and try to make my Heavenly Father proud by using it for what He would have me do.  Next time you're feeling down about your body, just think about all of the great and amazing things YOUR body can do! 

He's Aware

I've been thinking a lot lately about how God is aware of us.  He loves us.  He knows our hearts.  He wants to help us.  Every day, God lets me know that he cares.  Sometimes I notice His hand, sometimes I don't.  I noticed His intervention in my life one day while I was in Peru.

It was my first Sunday in Peru.  I had decided to go to church with the Gavancho's (a connection with the Thornock's), which required me to go across town to the chapel.  Eunice had given me the address to the chapel and I had just caught a cab because I didn't feel too comfortable with the bus system yet.   Church was from 2-5, and then I decided to talk to the bishop about getting my records transferred and setting up a time for a temple recommend interview so I could go to the temple when I visited Lima.  When I got out of the church around 6 o'clock, it was dark.  I was as good as lost, in a foreign city, and I was feeling a little panicked.  Regardless, I went to go and catch a cab to get me back to my house.  Just about every car was a cab, but being a blonde American in Peru, I was strongly advised to only take legitimate cabs.  It was getting later and later, and I could not get one to stop for me.  I was getting pretty frustrated when two sweet girls came over to me and asked me if I needed help.  In my broken Spanish I explained to them that I just needed to get home.  They asked me where I lived, and said that it would almost be impossible to find a cab in this area to take me there at this time of night.  But, they said they knew a couple of buses that would take me to a plaza right close to there.  I was so relieved!  So, I thanked them a ton, hopped on the bus, and started the ride back toward Arcopata.  

The bus was standing room only, and as I stood there, I was feeling pretty discouraged.  I had felt so sure about my decision to come down to Peru, and now the only thing I felt sure of was that I was going to die down here!  That's when a kind lady started talking to me.  Even with my limited Spanish, I was able to understand everything she said, and I was able to come up with what to say back.  Through my conversation with this sweet lady, my spirits were lifted.  As I got off the bus and finished the walk to my house, I was lucky enough to realize that I had just seen the hand of God in my life.  Those two girls were prompted to come and help me.  That lady on the bus was inspired to talk to me.  I was blessed to be able to understand her and have a conversation with her.  Even though I was far away from home, I was able to see my Heavenly Father's hand in my life that evening. 

I know He is helping me every single day.  He is there, and He is aware of each one of us.  

To: Dads

Dads are great.  I feel so lucky to be surrounded by men who are great dads.  

Let's start with my neighbors.  Everyday as I ride my bike down the street I see at least one dad out playing with his kids.  The kids are laughing and running, shooting hoops or throwing a baseball.  Making memories with their dads.   It just warms my heart.  

Next comes my bosses and people I've had a chance to work with.  I get to be around these men without their kids, and they still speak so highly of them.  Sometimes they're frustrated with their kids choices, sometimes they don't know what to do, but they're always proud of them.  When they are with their kids they are always trying to make the most of their time.  They are trying to be the best dads they can be.  I know these men love their kids.  

My life just wouldn't be complete without my brothers.  I have three who CHOSE to join our family?!  As well as two who are stuck with us by default.  Four out of five of them are dads now, and they are awesome at it.  They are always supporting their kids in their activities, taking them camping and fishing, teaching them to ride bikes, spending quality time with them, and just being good examples.  My neices and nephews are pretty dang lucky.

Grandpas.  Grandpas are like dads on steroids.  They know SO much and have the best stories.  Nothing quite compares to a grandpa's laugh either.  I've been blessed with two incredible grandpas--one who has passed on and one who is still here.  Both are great men who love their kids, grandkids, wives, and most importantly, the Lord.  Because of their faith and diligence, my family can be together forever.  

Being able to associate with all of these dads now, as an adult, has shed a little more light on to just how much my dad loves me.  I have spent countless hours with my dad--around the dinner table, family scriptures, in the gym, in the mountains, in the car, at the school, in the garden, and the list could go on and on...  He's been frustrated with me.  He's been proud of me.  Most importantly, he's loved me.  

So, on this beautiful day in June, I just want to say thank you to all the dads.  You're awesome, and you're all influencing my life in more ways than you know.  

June 7th Already?!

I can't believe it's already June 7th.  Where has the first month of summer gone?!  It's been a busy month, but a great month!  

I started work up at the cemetery again for the 4th year in a row.  I guess it's safe to say I love that job.  I got a new work partner, Kalbie Harmon, and she's great!  We've had a good time working together.  The first three weeks were busy trying to get ready for Memorial Day.  We were up there lots of hours and we got wet lots of times.  I haven't been alive for a long time, but this was definitely the rainiest May I've ever experienced.  I just felt like I was always soggy... It was all worth it though, cause the cemetery ended up looking pretty great for Memorial Day, and I got to know Kalbie a TON better.  Very successful month at the cemetery.  

At the start of the summer, Tess decided our family needed to set some goals.  So, we had a family home evening activity where we each wrote down some goals we wanted to accomplish this summer.  My favorite one so far has been "a hike a week."  Because of some crazy schedules, I haven't been able to be as adventurous on the hikes as I've wanted to be, but we've gone on a hike each week none the less.  This next week's hike is going to be pretty legit, so stay posted :) 

Up Rocky Peak.  I love these three.  

What would I do with out this sis?  

Tyson and Candace came down for a few days here this last week and we had a fun time with them.  Sunday afternoon Dad, Tyson, Tess, and I went on a drive up to my Uncle Ron's summer range and Tess and I got to hear story after story of my dad and Tyson's days out cowboyin'.  It was a good afternoon! 

Ron's horses.  Everything was SO green!

One night we all met Tami, Casey, Tel, and Kimball up in Jackson at the Bar J.  It was so fun being together, eating good food, and listening to some great music and jokes.  Those guys are hilarious, and so talented!  

The five members of the Bar J Wranglers.

This past week I've been able to go docking.  I sure do love doing that, and the Child's are nice enough to keep letting me come back!  It's made for some long days, but it's been so worth it! It's so fun being out there with all of them.  They're the best!  Tyson and Candace came out for a few days so that was fun! Tess came out for a day as well.  It was fun introducing her to it, and now she understands why I like going so much :)  So, thanks Child's for yet another fun week out dockin!!

Cute little Mason and Katelyn with some lambs.

Finally, this weekend Tel got baptized.  I'm so proud of him and the choice he made to become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  As I watched the baptism, I thought about the covenants I made at my baptism 14 years ago.  I covenanted to take Christ's name upon me, to always remember Him, keep His commandments, and serve Him til the end.  Since I was baptized, I've messed up plenty!  I've had moments when I didn't represent Christ well, when I didn't serve when I could have, and plenty of times when I didn't keep His commandments.  Luckily for me, each week I get to renew these covenants as I take the sacrament.  It's kind of like getting baptized again.  I get to repent of all of the things of screwed up on during the week, and resolve to try my best the next week.  I'm so thankful for the ordinance of the sacrament and the chance I have to renew those baptisimal covenants I made when I was eight, just like Tel.  

One of the most handsome 8-year-olds ya ever did see! 

So, as you can see, my summer is off to a great start!  It'll be fun to see what the next three months will bring :)